Sawdust and Mistletoe

by Michelle Pennington

  Ava tipped up her head and studied the canopy of lights. Usually, Hunter was really open with what he was thinking, but other times he was impossible to read. “This is beautiful. And so bright, you barely need the street lights out here. I wonder if I could do something like this in the ballroom.”

  “The lights could get pretty heavy. You’d have to have something strong to hang them from.”

  “Yeah. Maybe you could come by with me sometime and help me figure it out.”

  “Sure. I’m happy to help.”

  Ava thought for a minute before saying the words that had been hovering on the tip of her tongue all evening. “Hunter, would you consider coming to work for me? Part-time. You could still take any jobs you got during the day. But I need a good crew if I’m going to pull this off.

  Reaching over to take her hand, Hunter looked thoughtful, and a little sad. “As long as I’m in town, I’m all yours.”

  “But you’re staying at least through Christmas, right?”

  “Maybe. If my brother finds a job in the next week or so, I might need to head back early. I just don’t know right now.”

  “Oh. I understand.”

  Holding hands with him didn’t seem so harmless anymore. Ava wiggled her fingers and pulled them free of his.

  “Ava, don’t. Let’s just enjoy the time we have.”

  With a fierce effort, she forced herself to smile. “Okay. But let’s not make the goodbye any harder.”

  Feeling as if her throat couldn’t get any tighter, Ava sipped her hot chocolate and wished she could get back the happy glow she’d felt only moments ago, but it had dissipated like the cloud of her breath into the cold night air.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Hunter usually found sanding to be relaxing. Tonight, as he worked on the dollhouse in Ava’s garage, however, he couldn’t focus on it. After their night at the city square, he’d felt as if an awkward gap was growing between them. He ran the sandpaper over the thin edges of each cubed section of the dollhouse, carefully rounding the edges, and thought that maybe it was for the best.

  But try as he might, he couldn’t resist the pull to be with her when she was so close. So, he finished the sanding, cleaned off the sawdust, and decided that he needed to ask Ava what color to stain the dollhouse. He went around to the front of the house and stood under the icicle lights he’d hung only a few nights ago. It took a moment after he knocked before someone opened the door, and to his disappointment, it was Olivia.

  “Come in,” she said, waving at him.

  “I don’t want to bother you. I know you’re working.”

  “Trust me, even if Ava doesn’t want to take a break, she needs to.”

  Olivia stepped to the side, holding the door open, and he turned sideways to step around her. Ava sat on a cushion on the floor, staring at her laptop on the coffee table in front of her. A bag of red and green M&M’s was open next to her with candy spilled around. She picked one up and popped it into her mouth without ever taking her eyes off the screen. He didn’t know if she was that consumed with her work or if she was ignoring him on purpose.

  “Hey Scrooge,” he said, “You might want to be careful eating such festive candy. It might turn you to the jolly side.”

  Ava looked up and rolled her eyes at him. “Trust me—I wish I could get in the mood for Christmas. It would be a lot easier to plan the Candy Cane ball if I was.”

  “Well, why don’t you take a break and come help me make a design decision on the dollhouse?”

  Her eyes brightened and she closed her laptop. “I’d love to.”

  Both she and Olivia followed him outside to the garage. Neither of them had seen it fully assembled, so he was excited to see their reaction.

  “It’s so perfect,” Olivia said, with excitement ringing in her voice. She ran her hand over the roof, which stood level with her shoulders, and walked around looking at it from every angle.

  Hunter glanced at Ava since she hadn’t said anything. It was her opinion he cared about most. This dollhouse was for Molly, but he admitted that he was just as invested in impressing Ava as he was his niece. Fortunately, a soft smile turned up the corners of her lips.

  “Well?” he asked, stepping close enough that their arms brushed.

  She elbowed him lightly. “Stop fishing for compliments. You know it’s amazing.” Her warm breath formed a white cloud as she spoke. “I was just thinking that I would have killed for this when I was younger. And I don’t even mean that much younger. My teenage self would have loved to decorate this baby.”

  “And now your ancient self can do it.” A corner of Hunter’s mouth turned up in a half smile when she directed a flat glare at him.

  “I’m twenty-six.”

  “Like I said. Ancient.”

  “Then you must be Father Time himself.”

  “I’m only a few years older than you are. And a lot less mature, so that makes us about even, I’d say.”

  “How’d we get on this ridiculous conversation anyway?”

  Hunter wiggled his eyebrows. “I have a talent for absurdity.” He motioned to the dollhouse. “What color should I stain it?”

  “Stain it! No way! We’re painting it.”

  “Paint? This is beautiful wood!”

  “It’s pine,” she said, as if that was a good argument.

  “Yes—with a gorgeous grain to it. We aren’t painting it.”

  “Uh-oh,” Olivia said, backing away. “I’m not getting involved in this.”

  Ava glanced at her friend, but said, “Hunter, I’m sorry, but trust me on this. Even if it upsets the craftsman in you, Molly would much rather have a house painted bright, pretty colors than a dark stain.”

  “We don’t have to do a dark stain.”

  Ava strode over to a utility shelf on the far wall and pulled down a piece of poster board with the dollhouse drawn to perfect scale and painted in precise detail with the decoration she wanted to do. “What do you think of this?”

  Hunter hated to give in, but her plan did look amazing. “You can make it look like that?”

  “I’m going to try. But no staining, okay?”

  “Okay,” he said, wondering if she was always hard to say no to.

  “Well, I’m not painting tonight,” Olivia said. “Because I’m starving.”

  Ava shivered just then, the tremors rolling through her body, and for the first time, he noticed that although Olivia wore a warm sweater, Ava only had on a thin t-shirt. He’d kept her out here long enough. “As much fun as it would be to paint this, I think it can wait a few days. Let’s get Scrooge inside before she’s frozen in more places than just her heart.”

  Ava glared at him but turned to go inside again. “I’d argue if my teeth didn’t want to chatter so much.”

  “I’ll be right in after I close up for the night,” Hunter said. He stared after her for a second, wishing he’d gone with his first impulse to warm her up by pulling her into his arms. But she probably wouldn’t have appreciated it much.

  With a sigh, he loaded his tools into the back of his truck, swept up the sawdust from his sanding, and shut off the light, closing the garage door behind him as he went inside. Ava was pouring hot water into three mugs for tea when he went in. “Tea?”

  “Yeah, peppermint,” Ava said. “I figured you could both use the warmth as much as I could before you went home.”

  Home, huh? Well, that put him squarely in his place. Here he had been hoping she’d want him to hang out for a while longer, but she was already talking about him leaving.

  “Actually,” Olivia said, “I think I’d better get going.”

  “What?” Ava asked. “You said you could stay till we figured out a theme.”

  “Yeah, well, it’s taking forever. And like I said, I’m starving. I’ll take the tea with me though. I’ll bring the mug back tomorrow.”

  Olivia dumped a spoonful of sugar in one of the mugs and grabbed her phone and keys from the counter. “Good night. Don’t get too wi
ld and crazy without me.”

  Hunter smiled and pointed his thumb at Ava, “Who her? I doubt she could.”

  Olivia laughed and let herself out, closing the door behind her.

  He turned and watched as Ava tossed her tea bag in the trash and stirred sugar in her tea. “Wild and crazy is over-rated when you’re trying to build a business.”

  “Maybe,” Hunter said. “But you might say that taking such a big risk is crazy enough. But it’s worth it. All the good things in life come with risks.”

  Ava passed the sugar bowl toward him and handed him a spoon. “Like what?”

  Hunter stirred his tea. “Oh, driving fast, trying a new Chinese buffet, blind dates.” He grinned at Ava when she chuckled. Then he added quietly, “Relationships.”

  Her smile twisted into a frown and her face grew somber. “Yeah. So, they’re worth it to you?”

  Hunter took a sip of his tea, looking at her over the mug. When he set it back on the counter, he said cautiously, “Yeah. Even if you try a few bad egg rolls along the way.” He twitched his lips to the side, thinking. “Well, except that buffet in Illinois. That one was not worth it.”

  Ava was laughing now, so Hunter relaxed. “Know what? It’s time to get some holiday cheer in this room.”

  “What?” She looked around, clearly confused.

  “You haven’t put up a Christmas tree or any decorations. No wonder you can’t get any inspiration here. Let’s go get you one.”

  “Get me what?” Ava stood as stiff as a two-by-four.

  “A tree. But bundle up, because it’s definitely going to dip below freezing before we get back.”

  “Where are we going?” Ava asked.

  “There’s this cool tree farm I keep passing. It’s a little way out of town, but it has an awesome light display, and there are always lots of cars there in the evenings.”

  “Right now?”

  “Sure. What else are you going to do now that Olivia has gone home? Be unproductive all alone instead of with your friend.”

  To his surprise, Ava actually smiled. “Okay. Fine. But just a small one, you hear me?”

  “I’m not promising anything. Let’s go see what they have.”

  “Fine, but I’m not budging on the small tree.”

  “Bundle up good. I wouldn’t want to have to carry you and the tree back to the truck because you’ve frozen into a statue.”

  “Very funny. And I guess since you’re a lumberjack, you don’t even need a coat.” As she spoke, Ava reached out and tugged on his fleece lined, plaid shirt.

  He laughed at her. “No, I’m good.”

  “Huh. Hold on a minute.” She went and put her mug in the sink, then went down the hall to the bathroom.

  Hunter walked over to the sink and dumped his peppermint tea down the drain. He hadn’t wanted to hurt her feelings, but he hated tea of any kind. By the time he’d rinsed both mugs out, Ava was back in skinny jeans, knee-high boots, and a black sweater. It seemed to be her going-out uniform for cold weather, and it certainly looked incredible on her.

  “So where are we going again?” she asked.

  “The Neil Family’s Christmas Wonderland, I think it’s called.”

  She got her coat out of the closet and he took it from her to help her put it on. She looked back over her shoulder as she buttoned it. “You really are trying to kill me, aren’t you? What if I get toxic Christmas shock?”

  “Relax. I’m just trying to put some sparkle in those eyes of yours.”

  She opened the front door. “Your eyes have enough sparkle for both of us.”

  Hunter grinned as he followed her outside. He wondered if she realized how her words made them sound like a couple.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Hunter pulled his truck into a field sectioned off as a parking lot and turned to grin at her. Ava couldn’t help but smile back. He was just too charming.

  “Can’t we just stay in your truck? It’s warm in here.”

  He wiggled his eyebrows and leaned towards her. “Hoping for a make-out session?”

  Ava blushed and reached for the door handle. Hunter’s laughter followed her as she slid down out of her seat. With his long stride, Hunter met her on the passenger’s side before she’d even shut the door.

  The cold air prickled against her skin, so she wound her scarf around her neck and pulled her gloves out of her coat pocket. She put them on as they walked down a path through some trees at the edge of a field.

  As they emerged on the other end, the most massive display of lights and inflatable lawn decorations she’d ever seen burst upon her.

  “Nope,” she said, looking over the monstrous explosion of lights and decorations. She turned around to leave, but Hunter bent and scooped her up over his shoulder.

  He carried her toward the lights. “Sorry, Scrooge. This is for your own good.”

  “Put me down, you over-grown beast!” But it was hard to yell at him because she was laughing too so she hammered lightly on his back and wiggled around. Then her hat fell off. “Dang it, Hunter. My beanie fell off. Stop.”

  “Fine.” He bent again and let her slide down to her feet, but as she walked back for her hat, he grabbed onto her hand. “Just to make sure you don’t run away.”

  She picked it up then tried to pull her hand free, but he didn’t let go. Glaring at him, she said, “I need both hands to put it back on.”

  He plucked her beanie from her hand and pulled it on for her. He even made sure it covered her ears. “There. Now come on. I think I smell popcorn.”

  Ava sighed and let him pull her along by the hand. “You’re like an overgrown kid.”

  The entrance to the Christmas wonderland was a long tunnel made of light-wrapped arches over a path. Ava glanced around, amazed at the display. The lights on the square had been beautiful and majestic. These were dazzling and chaotic. They swirled up tree trunks and stretched from tree to tree in colorful arrangements.

  Portions of the field were sectioned off by lights, creating paths to lead customers through the display. A Santa in a plane zoomed back and forth on a line above their heads, and music floated over the sound of laughter and chatter from the hordes of people swarming through. Completely against her will, Ava found herself enjoying all the sights.

  “There’s the smile I’ve been looking for,” Hunter said.

  She turned to find him looking down at her. “It’s really something. But what kind of whackos put up this many lights?”

  Hunter flashed a smile. “Whackos who want to bring in the crowds to buy their trees.”

  “Don’t forget, that’s why we came. I don’t even see where they are.”

  “You probably have to walk all the way through this maze. Let’s go find the popcorn.”

  Ava clamped her jaw shut but gave up trying to suppress her laughter. It was such an odd contrast seeing such a towering, brawny man enjoying this so much. And even though she knew it wasn’t the wisest thing, she loved holding his hand, feeling his strong fingers curled warmly around hers. She would have endured worse to enjoy the sensation of belonging it gave her.

  Up ahead a family was clustering around a man dressed as Santa Claus sitting on a bench. The mom settled a bundled-up baby girl on Santa’s lap then rushed around to stand by her husband while someone took a picture. As soon as the flash flared, the baby started crying and everyone started laughing.

  As Ava and Hunter got close, Santa handed the older brother and sister a candy cane. Ava smiled and would have passed on, but Santa said, “You two want a picture with Santa?”

  Ava paused, “Uh, that’s okay—”

  “Yes, we do.” Hunter sat down on the bench next to Santa and pulled Ava down on his lap. “Can you squeeze in for a selfie, Santa?” he asked as he pulled out his phone.

  The dad of the little family paused. “I can take it for you,”

  “Great. Thanks,” Hunter said, handing him his phone.

  Sitting on Hunter’s lap with his arms wrapped around
her was incredible, and if only Santa hadn’t been there too, leaning in close for the picture, she would have been tempted to stay there all night. As it was, as soon as the dad had taken the picture, she hopped up and smoothed down her wool coat.

  Hunter looked at the picture and turned the screen to show Ava.

  “You’re such a cute couple,” the mom said. She’d stopped to wait with the baby while their two other kids looked at an eight-foot snow globe inflatable.

  “Thanks,” Hunter said, smiling at Ava and nudging her with his elbow.

  Not knowing what to say, since she didn’t want to bother explaining that they were not actually a couple even if they were holding hands and acting like one, Ava just smiled.

  But before the dad moved ahead with his family, he turned to Hunter, “Enjoy having her to yourself while you can.” Then he collected his kids and shepherded them down another path.

  Hunter grinned and took Ava’s hand again. “Well, since they have a baby, he must get her alone every once in a while.”

  Ava gasped, then laughed in spite of herself. “Come on. There’s the popcorn vendor.”

  When they looked over all the different flavor options, Hunter said he wanted cheddar and Ava argued that caramel was the way to go.

  “We do have a bag of mixed cheddar and caramel. It’s my favorite.”

  “Mixed together?” Ava said, appalled.

  “We’ll take it,” Hunter said, opening his wallet.

  The lady handed out a huge bag of popcorn, and Hunter opened it as they moved down a different path. He grabbed a handful and tossed a few pieces in his mouth. “Oh man. This is good.”

  Ava hesitated, but took her gloves off and grabbed a handful. She wondered if she could pick through it and eat one flavor at a time. Both were amazing, so she reached for another handful. Hunter put his hand in the bag at the same time and their fingers brushed.

  Her heart sped up at the contact, but she laughed and flicked his fingers away. “Slow down. You aren’t going to leave any for me.”

  “Now that is awesome,” Hunter said, pointing to one of the inflatables in front of them. It was a motorized Santa that pulled his pants down and mooned people as the passed by.